Why AA?
In 2012, after a faculty party, I was pulled over for DUI and spent the night in Bloomington city jail. Yes, I did (and do) have a drinking problem. I spent several years in addiction therapy and the Alcoholics Anonymous program. I have not had a drink since that night. For me, the program worked.
You can order the game online now
In 2018 I designed a game about AA and made it available here as a pdf download. It has become the most popular content on my site. This fall I improved the design and uploaded it to Game Crafter, a print-on-demand game publisher. If you’re willing to spend $40, you can get an actual game instead of the crappy pdf DIY version.
Order the AA Game at Game Crafter.
About the game
You roll the dice and move. Land on a space, draw a card, and read it. The stories are all real things I heard in AA. Some of it is bad. But there’s no point in sugar-coating it for a board game: If you’re an alcoholic, or dependent on any drug, horrible things can happen. You have to stop.
Players can get into recovery, at which point the stories get happier. Not all at once – you have to climb out of the hole and it takes time. But it gets better.
Players win if they can get everybody into recovery. But if someone dies, they all lose.
AA is a cooperative game where everybody is trying to help everybody else stay sober.
About the money
The game is priced at cost; no profit is earned from sales.
Words and Games 